The Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission (GERC) has adopted the tariffs discovered by Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam (GUVNL) to procure 500 MW of solar power under its Phase XXVII tender.

The Commission approved the discovered tariff range of ₹2.44 (~$0.0275) to ₹2.45 (~$0.0276)/kWh.

The Commission directed GUVNL to execute power purchase agreements with the successful bidders within the timelines specified in the tender conditions and to submit signed copies of these agreements to it, together with an affidavit confirming compliance with the bidding guidelines and any approved deviations.

Background

The matter began when GUVNL approached the Commission, seeking the adoption of tariffs discovered through a transparent and competitive bidding process.

The bidding process unfolded with the issuance of the tender in May 2025, followed by the submission of bids in July and the opening of technical and financial bids in mid and late July.

Thirteen technically qualified bidders participated in the e-reverse auction. Three companies emerged as winners. Oriano Clean Energy and Waaree Forever Energies both quoted a tariff of ₹2.44 (~$0.0275)/kWh. Patel Infrastructure quoted ₹2.44 (~$0.0276)/kWh and ranked next in order.

GUVNL then approved the issuance of letters of intent at the discovered tariffs through a resolution. It offered an additional 7 MW of capacity to Oriano under the greenshoe option at the lowest tariff. Oriano confirmed acceptance of this additional capacity.

The three successful bidders in their affidavits stated that they had no objections to the Commission adopting the discovered tariffs.

Commission’s Analysis

The Commission observed that GUVNL had complied with the bidding guidelines issued by the Ministry of Power. The tender was published with approved deviations. The technical and financial bids were opened in the presence of a duly constituted evaluation committee. The highest financial bidder was eliminated as required.

The successful bidders were identified through an electronic reverse auction, in accordance with the tender provisions, which permitted the selection of bidders quoting up to 2% above the lowest tariff.

The Commission recorded that the tariffs fell within this band. It also observed that allocation of capacities was consistent with the bucket size of the tender and the rule of ranking based on the timing of quotes.

It took note of the national commitment to source half of the total power capacity from non-fossil sources by 2030 and of Gujarat’s own renewable purchase obligation trajectory, which requires a substantial addition of solar capacity.

The Commission also noted that GUVNL had already tied up over 21,000 MW of solar capacity, of which more than 8,000 MW had been commissioned, and the remainder was in various stages of construction. It accepted the petitioner’s submission that timely procurement through competitive bidding was essential to meet the state’s clean energy requirements.

The regulator directed GUVNL to execute the power purchase agreements with the successful bidders within the stipulated timelines.

It instructed the petitioner to file copies of the duly executed PPAs along with an affidavit confirming that no deviations had been adopted beyond those previously approved. It also required GUVNL to publish the names of successful bidders and detailed tariff components on its website for 30 days.

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